Stefan Mileschin

Ransomware 2.0 has opposable thumbs

Data-stealing ransomware attacks are evolving into data-stealing attacks, according to a new security update from F-Secure.

Dubbed Ransomware 2.0, the hackers' attackers obtain more leverage over their victims, and if organizations first refuse to pay a ransom to decrypt their data, attackers threaten to leak the stolen information, increasing pressure on victims to pay.

This evolution, referred to as Ransomware 2.0 in the report, was a significant development in 2020. Only one ransomware group used this type of extortion in 2019. By the end of 2020, 15 different ransomware families had adopted this approach. More than 40 percent of ransomware families discovered in 2020, and several older families stole data from victims by the end of last year.

F-Secure's Tactical Defense Unit Senior Manager Calvin Gan said that organizations with reliable backups and effective restoration procedures are in a solid position to recover from a ransomware attack without having to pay.

"However, managing a potential data leak is a dramatically different challenge, especially for organizations that possess confidential information. Ransomware actors, current and future, will likely feel encouraged to try new things and jump on vulnerabilities faster, which we already see with the recent MS Exchange vulnerabilities."

https://fudzilla.com/news/52602-rans...tacks-evolving